Keeping the Peace

An illustrated history of the UK’s nuclear weapons program.

In 1940 two scientists, refugees from Nazi Germany, wrote a memorandum which was to prove one of the most significant documents of the twentieth century. In it, they outlined proposals for the manufacture of a uranium-fueled ‘super bomb.’ The paper propelled Britain into the forefront of research into nuclear weapons and led, through the collaboration of British and American scientists in the Manhattan Project, to the decisive ending of the Second World War.

One of the British scientists, William Penney, was chosen to lead the UK’s nuclear weapons program after the war and went on to be the first director of the Atomic Weapons Research Establishment at Aldermaston. Since then, the name ‘Aldermaston’ has become synonymous with Britain’s nuclear deterrent. With numerous photos and illustrations, this book tells the fascinating story of Aldermaston and the other sites that for half a century have made a unique contribution to the defense of the realm.